Tea review: Private Selections Forest Fruit Blend

My husband is more of a coffee guy. I can’t have coffee, so he always feels a little guilt when he gets himself a bag of coffee and can’t share it with me. One of the last times he stopped at Kroger to grab some coffee grounds for the office, he noticed some little canisters of premium teas from Kroger’s Private Selections line. Knowing how much I love tea and how much I love fruit, he picked up an herbal blend for me to try.

Private Selections Forest Fruit blend is an extremely fruity herbal blend, with a flavor dominated by raspberry and black currant. It’s got notes from its other contributors, which include apple, hibiscus, rose, and blackberry leaf, and it brews into the most beautiful deep red-purple drink.

The blend is heavenly to smell when brewing. The first sip was incredibly tart, but it was also a robust flavor for such a small amount of tea. I used slightly less than a teaspoon for my first brew. I’d find it difficult to drink straight, but the addition of sugar help brings out the other fruit flavors. Apple becomes more noticeable, and the berry flavors are a bit more balanced when sweetened.

Adding milk to the cup resulted in a delicious dessert taste, something like a berry smoothie. But since the blend has citric acid added as a preservative, milk should be added with care–my first attempt to add it resulted in the milk curdling, which I have not had happen in a tea in ages.

Overall, I enjoyed the bold berry taste of this blend, but I don’t think it’d be something I drink on its own, sweetened or otherwise. Instead, it seems like an ideal addition to a strong black tea for a delicious berry blend, and I’ll look forward to doing just that this week.